A feed mode using cut paper that has been cut in advance to the prescribed size and a feed mode using roll paper obtained by winding paper for printing around a core are the main modes for feeding paper for printing in printing devices. The feed mode using roll paper is usually employed for feeding comparatively large paper requiring a large accommodation space, such as paper of A1 size, and the feed mode using cut paper is typically employed for feeding comparatively small paper, such as paper of A4 size.
By contrast with the cut paper for which the remaining quantity of paper can be easily visually determined, with roll paper, from which the paper is continuously fed to printing, the remaining quantity of paper is difficult to determine. Accordingly, a problem associated with the roll paper is that when the remaining quantity of paper in the roll cannot be accurately controlled, the paper of the roll runs out before the printing processing of the entire page is completed and printing cannot be completed. As an example of technology for controlling the remaining quantity of roll paper, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 10-25046 disclosed a technology for storing the remaining quantity of roll paper for each roll paper in a memory provided in a separate roll paper control system.
However, the problem is that when the remaining quantity of roll paper is stored in a device such as printer or personal computer, the remaining quantity of roll paper cannot be controlled unless a device storing the remaining quantity of roll paper is used. Furthermore, if the remaining quantity of roll paper relating to a plurality of paper rolls is stored, or if the number of items that have to be stored, such as paper type, size, and the like, is increased, the required memory capacity is also increased. The problem is, however, that installing a large-capacity memory in the printer increases the cost.
Another problem is that the information on the remaining quantity of roll paper is used only to control the remaining quantity of roll paper and the information on the remaining quantity of roll paper cannot be utilized effectively.